The Strongest
by Diddly Diddly D
Summary: Chelsea just wanted the thing that would make her life feel less empty, but it seemed everyone always got to it first. Leaving her with the short end of the stick. He, on the other hand, just wanted to prove to her that he could be that something. R&R.
1. A Different Kind Of Lovesick

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Harvest Moon, yadda yadda. Pretty sure you would all hate me if I did.

A different kind of lovesick- Chelsea

"Well, you could say that I am an accomplished farmer... I mean, it's only my second fall on the island and I have my barn, coop and stable full. Gannon built all of the bridges, and fixed all of the roads for me. And I have a nice stash, in case anything happens. I even have a maker shed and most of the makers. I haven't gotten around to the house renovations, but I don't really see a need to. Same goes for the greenhouse, I mean I have a perfectly good field right there, what's the point? It's just; I don't know what to do at this point. Any input, Lanna?" I said as I looked up at Lanna, Sunny Island's one-hit-wonder turned dirty-minded fisher. She seemed to mull over the question as she smoothed out the wrinkles on her pink tablecloth and said rather coolly,

"Well babe, how is your love life? Sometimes when it's lacking in that department you feel it constantly." I couldn't help but empty my tea filled mouth all over her un-expecting face.

"You are joking. You have to be. I don't have a man, don't want a man, and I sure as hell don't need one." I said as I scoffed and set down the pink porcelain cup I was holding, and then wiped off my mouth.

After she had wiped her face with the handkerchief she had, she shot back coldly. "Thanks, because you know, I couldn't go on with living my life without you spitting all your tea on my face." I had to stifle a giggle at her oh-so-sarcastic remark. _You would never expect this sense of humor from a girl with so much pink; _I ended up thinking to myself. Then she started up again. "I really think you should develop a love interest, people might think you are a lesbian. And really, with all that space on your ranch you don't have any TESTOSTERONE on it. Frick, even your ANIMALS aren't male." I had to shake my head and laugh at her remark. I could have sworn all of this hanging out with her gets to me sometimes; it even rubs off on me. So before I got anymore of her in my system I had to leave.

"Before I get the exact same thinking process as you do, I should leave. Maybe clear my head and go mining." I said standing abruptly.

She wanted to protest, but could tell I needed it. So she settled with making one of her witty little comebacks. "Don't think you have heard the last of this; you're going to need some male contact sooner or later! I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE!"

"I love you too, Lanna" I called back, seeing that I was already halfway down the road. On the way I managed to bump into Pierre's stalker, and I mean literally. I almost knocked her over. "I'm sorry!" I managed to get out, clearly embarrassed for not paying attention to where I was going.

"Pierre?" She called out. _How could she mistake me for Pierre? Do I have a purple top hat and curly golden locks? I don't think so. _Was all I could manage to think as I continued to walk to the mine. While I was still fuming another thought managed to find its way into my head, _how could she like that little pipsqueak? He looks like he looks like a pre-pubescent Willy Wonka. Well I guess she likes someone. Unlike me… _The next time I looked up from my thoughts I was at the entrance to the mine. "This island is so small. You blink and you miss something…" I mumbled to myself as I got my hammer out and entered the mine.

I left the mine a few hours later, completely exhausted. My anger management was accomplished, but I only had a few ores to show for it. I managed to fall into my little thinking rants again. _There needs to be some kind of person out there for me, right? Even if the men on the island are limited, it's not like I'm stupid or undesirable or anything. I just so happen to be picky. But someone else I know happens to be picky. _"Speak of the devil." Was all I managed to choke out as I stumbled upon Natalie and Pierre in the woods, fighting about some kind of mushroom. _Natalie…How in the hell? One of the pickiest, smartest, mischievous people I know, with Pierre?! I didn't know you liked them so short… _My mind wandered again while I missed majority of their conversation. All I know now is that it ended well, extremely so. _How exactly does all of this start up from something as small as a mushroom? I don't even like mushrooms, and neither does Nat. _ All I could do at that point was try and calm down after she kissed the man that looked like he could have been her son.

Once I walked far enough to see Natalie's house, I decided to go and congratulate her on her budding romance. She didn't even consider any of the guys on the island. All of which weren't good enough for her. Even Denny, who was one of the two guys I considered pursuing on the island, the other being the hard-ass, Vaughn. I stood outside the door for a bit, thinking about what I would say, giving up on that I barged in, I was practically related to these people. Even if I wasn't like that with everyone, I was welcomed everywhere. As soon as I got my head through the doorjamb I was taken aback. Elliot and Julia?! What was the busty blonde doing with the big nerd I considered my big brother?! My mouth and brain apparently weren't working at the moment so all that came out was "Wh-Whaat? Y-you two? H-How in the hell?!" They only noticed I was standing there when I opened my big mouth, and left it open with shock. They turned and at first looked embarrassed, but then came to their senses and gave me the "What are you doing in here?" face. With that I took my leave, ducking my head back out, trying to hide my blush. I guess I wasn't welcome everywhere.

Taking a short break to recover from that amazingly awkward incident, I thought _Natalie can wait. I don't want to risk anything else by going back in there. God knows what might be happening now. _So I began to wander around the town until later in the evening, making sure I avoided little Wonka's stalker. I somehow ended up at the islands Diner. Only as I could smell the amazing food coming out of that place did I realize how famished I was. It didn't take long for my feet to propel me through the door and inside the Diner. I took a moment to fully enjoy the aroma coming out of the kitchen. Looking around I saw a few miners, the owner, and Vaughn. _I guess its Wednesday. _I thought as I noticed the silver-haired cowboy, as he scowled over a bowl of porridge. I then spotted a more, horrifying picture; you could call it; Denny and Lanna just so happened to be 'Socializing' at the table. She was trying to force her autograph on him. He didn't really care for it but seemed to enjoy her company anyway;_ that stupid, purple bandanna wearing, blobby bird carrying, big fish catching flirt._ The words flooded into my head. And the next words that came out of my mouth were the only ones that I could manage to get out, "Lanna, why?" I then proceeded to lose all composure and ran out of the Diner in tears.

I ran as quickly as my tired legs would carry me. I had to get somewhere, anywhere. I needed off this stupid, love struck island. Everyone seemed to have a date tonight. Of course it's the night I felt the worst about my single status. _I am witty, decent looking, and very successful. Why isn't there anyone that wants to chase after me?_ I then had to think about all the single suitors left on the Island. _Vaughn is too much of a hard-ass to open himself up to me. Mark was alright? Why can't I have a love connection with anyone? _I began to slow down as I passed over a bridge. _If anything, I can go on some dating service. _It started to get darker as the foliage was thickening around me. _Oh, shit…_ Was all I thought as I felt my body begin to turn upside-down. Then, nothing.

**Author's notes: While I was avoiding homework, I felt like re-reading my story. Made some edits that just bothered the crap out of me, and added some author's notes. =] I have an easier time writing for Chelsea. I have been told a lot of my personality ends up coming out when I write her chapters. Well, thassall for now. Review and I will love you forever. Loves~ Diddly. **


	2. First impressions

**A/N: **Will be found at the end. =] I wanted to put some.

**Disclaimer: **Forgot to put this in the last chapter, I do not own the rights to Harvest Moon or any of the characters and such.

First Impressions - Shiba

_Why? _This was the question I frequently found myself asking. _What is the point for this? I can do all of this in my sleep. Why must I keep doing it? _I had to wonder as I made my daily rounds. Wada has had me doing this since I was a young boy. _Well, Wada. Here is the thing. I am not a boy anymore. I am a skilled hunter, I can catch the biggest fish in the river, I know all of the grasses and their effect on the body. I am the master of this jungle. I am better than you old man, who just so happens to be growing weaker with your old age. Even then, old man, you already taught me all you know. _I still finished all of the chores he set for me that day. I didn't want to have to face him angry.

I began to walk towards the last trap Wada had me set up a few days before. There was something different about this one. I couldn't quite tell, seeing that I wasn't very close to the trap yet. But I did know that there was _something _caught in it. Upon inspection it seemed to be an unknown animal.

I couldn't help but get closer to the animal. Turned out, its head had been bleeding. It was already dark, so I thought that I should take it back to the house. Maybe the old man could figure out what this thing was. There had to be _some _things left he had to teach me. If not then, it didn't matter how much I loved him he would just be useless. Gathering up my findings from the day and the newfound animal I started to head for the house. I had some difficulty getting the door open with my hands full, but being the quick thinker that I am, I found a way. Turns out your foot could come in great handy with situations like this. After walking in like nothing just happened, I laid the animal on the bearskin rug. I stood and thought long and hard about what I was going to say. The words might have come to me easily in my head. But speech was not my forte.

"Wada, what this? Can I eat it?" Again the frustration with my speech boiled up but, I had to keep my head clear and listen to Wada. My problems could be sorted out later.

"…………Woman……….." He seemed to know what he was talking about. So I didn't ask anymore questions and began to examine the _woman_. I noted that there were it should be flat, there seemed to be two lumps.

"What this?" I asked as I began to poke one of them with my finger. It moved around, it just seemed so strange.

"…………..Fun-bags………." He just said it and began to nod matter-of-factly. Well, armed with this new information about the woman I began to get the herbs and pieces of cloth needed to dress the head wounds. The woman began to stir as I started to dress the wounds. I didn't know what to expect at that point so I reached over for the closest weapon I could find… A stick… _Great, how am I supposed to protect myself from this woman with a stick?_ I cursed at myself as the woman began to wake up.

"Ugnnnnn." It mumbled as it sat in an upright position.

"What your name, Woman?" I asked it. It had to have a name. According to Wada it _was _a human. So I wanted to know. Apparently, it wasn't the best move to call it woman.

"…What did you just call me?!" It's face turned blood red with fury. Before this moment I didn't even know that was possible. It seemed that me asking for its name wasn't the best idea. Widening my stance and putting the stick between where I stood and the woman, I decided to ask again.

"I said what your name?" Bracing myself for any attack I gripped my stick tighter, closing both eyes tightly. Not the smartest fighting trick, but I didn't want to see it lunge at me.

"Calling someone 'Woman' is very rude you know." It said with a stern tone, almost as if it were lecturing a small child. And yes. I do realize that I am still calling this woman an it. What else am I supposed to call it? There obviously isn't enough for it to have it's own words used only for them. Right? Well at least to my knowledge there wasn't. AND I KNOW ALL.

"But that what you are. Woman. Now what your name?" I practically demanded as I stood up straighter and loosened my grip on my stick, which, at this point I was growing tired of. So I threw it down beside me.

After throwing a glare my way she decided to end this conversation with "Chelsea." Then she got up and attempted to converse with Wada. Too bad it didn't know that Wada was only able to use single word expressions. "Hello? Hi. Do you by any chance know where I am?" It turned in Wada's general direction from where it was sitting in an attempt to get his attention.

"………….Jungle………." He wasn't very fond of strangers. This one was no different, even if I happened to take a particular liking to this one and its feisty personality. It looked as if he had just shown it some type of rude gesture. However, that didn't matter and it tried again.

"Do you know how to get out of here?" It asked, trying not to show the irritation with him in its voice.

"……….Door………" He said and pointed to the only exit in our home. Wada was becoming irritated with these constant questions coming from the woman. _I don't see why it just doesn't ask me. What did I do that could have possibly made it so angry?_ I had to laugh at this thought. I didn't do anything that could have caused this anger. Obviously the woman had some serious emotional problems. I sure hoped that there weren't any more like this.

After it attempted to get more words out of Wada it gave up. "Kelshee…" I managed to say. The new word was strange on my tongue. All it did was look up at me with clear rage in its eyes. "I know how to get out. I can help." And before I even had time to finish it was up and running towards me. I just stood there, helpless as it wrapped its arms around me, and squeezed tightly.

"Why didn't you tell me anything before you idiot?!" It said as it kept its arms around my waist.

"Because you angry with Shiba." I stated, confused at this random show of affection. And standing there in the…Embrace is what we will call it. I felt my heart beat harder. It was like I went running before this. It was a strange feeling and I was not used to it. This woman seemed to be the cause of all of it.

"Hahaha. Really? I'm sorry…" She said, her laugh was like a song in my ears. It sped up my heart rate even more. Along with the apology I practically melted. And at the height of all of this, she let go. I was quite disappointed. "Now, Shiba was it? Can you please get me out of here?" She looked up at me so hopefully. It was like I was butter.

"Yes. Follow me." And I started to walk; all the while I tried not to let my legs give out on me. _This cannot be good for my health _I thought as I turned my head back to check that Chelsea was still following close behind me. "Be careful. It dangerous." I said as I opened the door and stepped out into the darkness.

"You sure you know where you are going?" It asked, its voice seemed to quiver.

"No. But no worry. I protect you." I said, as I straightened my spine and puffed out my chest, only to realize it couldn't see me.

"Okay. Just let me know if you need direction—Oh!" She cut off mid-sentence as I grabbed its hand and started walking forward.

"What the words to describe woman?" I asked and hoped she understood what I was asking for.

"You mean the pronouns…?" It asked. Not exactly the answer I was looking for, so I grunted in response. "They are words like her, and she. If that is what you are asking about."

"Yes!" I practically shouted as I figured out how to compose my sentences using the pronouns used for the woman. _Hey, I am a quick learner. I am just glad I figured it out. The quickness was an added bonus. _I thought to myself as she jumped back from me. "What?" I asked.

"You startled me…" She then tried to find my hand, but missed, grabbing the waistband of my only piece of clothing. In turn, I jumped. And ended up tripping on the start of the bridge. After this ordeal came the straw that broke the horses back. Chelsea ran into me, and knocked me over. She ended up landing on top of me; which turned my head into butter, again.

"Kelshee, get off Shiba." I got out after I thought about what was happening. No matter how nice this was, I needed to get her home, and at this point I was determined to show her my ability to do so. "Where you live?"

"Sorry! And I live in the big farm house north of the town." She apologized then gave directions to where her house was. I have never been to the town but I did know the direction in which she was speaking. So I got up and kept walking, trying to help her up as I did so.

"Okay. Hurry. We go now." I answered as I adjusted the waistband on my loin cloth. I then grabbed her hand and kept walking down. _Why is my heart and my mind still like this? What on earth could she be doing to make me like this…_ I thought as I began to smell a heavenly aroma coming from what I made out to be a gray house with looked like a purple roof. "What that good smell, Kelshee?"

"It seems that Pierre is cooking. Strange. It's like already nine o'clock. He was always an odd bird. Maybe it's for Natalie…" She trailed off, going into what seemed to be deep thought. I shrugged it off and kept walking, before I even realized it, we had reached the building Chelsea had called "Natalie's house." At that point I started to walk north like she said, the road led to a massive farm.

"We here." I said as I let go of her hand so she could go up to her house. I surveyed the land seeing some seedlings and sleeping chickens. What I didn't expect was the dog that ran up to me and tried to bite my ankles.

"Artemis! Down!" Chelsea yelled at the animal. Obediently the dog called Artemis obeyed and went to lay at her feet. "Well, sorry about that Shiba. And thanks for walking me home." She gave me one last…embrace before she went into her house for the night.

"…You welcome." Is what I managed to squeak out, still flustered from whatever she just did was called. For the sake of naming things, I will call it a hug.

**Authors notes: Hurray. I finished the second chapter. It was harder to write in Shiba's point of view. But somehow it came out longer than my first chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it. ^-^ This still is my first fan fic. And so far I think it's coming along nicely. It's going how I want it. Haha. Well. Thanks for reading. Review if you want to. [I will love you very much if you do.] Loves! Diddly.**


	3. That Silver Haired Fox

**Disclaimer: Still don't own any of this. Pretty sure I never will.**

That Sliver Haired Fox- Chelsea

The morning after that whole jungle ordeal I woke up feeling like I had a hangover. Or at least what I imagined a hangover to feel like. It was an interesting experience. And I had a story to tell to the girls. But before that I had to go and tend to the animals. After I got changed and adjusted my bandanna so that it fit my head just so, I walked out my front door, onto a nice little… "Present" left for me by my dog, Artemis. "Artemis…" I grumbled and scraped the nice little present off my shoe.

It didn't help that after that she ran up to me, as happy as could be, covered in dirt. I couldn't help but crack a smile at that, even if I did just wash her the other day. "You silly dog," I laughed and gave her a pat on the head. I have always had a soft spot for animals. They were just so innocent, probably why I had the job of running the farm on this little island. Well, that and Felicia, Natalie's incredibly sweet and loving mother, wouldn't let Taro take over the farming business. Apparently the old man ran a farm way back when. _Maybe she wouldn't let him run the farm because his head was so big he would randomly fall over while working…_ I couldn't help but think as I made my way to the chicken coop.

My dear little chickens were waiting for me outside in the enclosed pen I had for them. "Tweet, Eggy, Eggle, Chip." I called out to each one. Chip was my favorite. She was the one I had when I was tired of using all of the cliché names for chickens. And for that, Chip has a special place in my heart, Chip also happened to be my highest ranked chicken. After petting all of them and collecting their eggs I tended to the newer chicks and older chickens that remained in the coop. These were either too old or too young to go out, poor things.

After the chickens were done I made my way over to the barn. "Hello my dears!" I called out to all of my sheep and cows. "How are we today?" I said cheerfully, walking up to my first cow, Vanilla, with a brush. As I was brushing her my thoughts wandered, _I wonder how jungle boy is. What was his name? Shiba? He was awfully cute, even if he wasn't, lets say…The best person to hold a conversation with. And he was a sweetie. I could tell. With the way he helped me home last night. Even then, I don't see myself going back to him to ask for a date. He wasn't really my type…_ My thoughts wandered as I brushed, milked, sheared, and fed the rest of the barn.

"Well, now that I am all done with my lovelies, I can go and hang with the girls. Bye everyone!" I called out to my animals before I left the barn. I skipped on my way to the stable to go get Luna. She was ready to get going as soon as I opened the stable doors. "Hey there." I said as I brushed her before getting on, didn't want to take her around town all dirty. I loved the feeling of riding horses, the wind through your hair, and it was the closest thing we had to cars on the island. "Alright, Luna, let's go to Natalie's house. Okay?" And like that, she was off.

"Natlee!" I busted through the door, for a second time, secretly hoping that Julia wasn't there. It would've been awkward. Before I actually went to talk to the witty little red-head I first went to greet Taro, Elliot and Felicia.

"My eyebrows are telling me it will be cloudy tomorrow!" Taro shouted at me, his head seemed to inflate. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Alrighty, Taro. Thanks." I then talked to Felicia, who mentioned how adorable I was and how happy she was to have moved here. Last was Elliot. How I loved the nerd, ever since I got to the island he was like a big brother to both Natalie and I.

"What do you want, Chelsea?" He asked, with a tone that implied irritation, but I knew better, it was seven in the morning and he wasn't exactly a morning person. So I just settled with giving him a big hug.

"Good morning to you too, Mr. Sunshine." I said to him after I released him from the hug. "You really need to work on your morning manners." I scolded playfully as I went into the part of the house Natalie hung out in until it was nice enough to go outside. "Oh Natlee!" I called out to her as I plopped down on her bed. "Guess what I saw." I said with a singsong tone in my voice.

"…What was it now?" She asked sounding uninterested, but at this point she was used to my rambling. So she just went on looking at the bookshelf as she listened.

"I saw this one red-head in the forest yesterday. She was…Talking, to little Wonka." I worded my sentence carefully, and waited to see if she would react. She didn't.

"Hmm? Oh right, that. Yeah. He wanted to make me a mushroom, and you know how much I hate mushrooms, Chels. It was bothersome if anything." She pretty much shrugged it off. Acting like she didn't care.

"What about that kiss I saw you give him?!" I practically blurted out at her. "Oops..." I then covered my mouth and sat there like an idiot. "I didn't mean to…"

She cut me off, "I know. Just don't worry about it… It's not like I don't like him. I just don't want anyone broadcasting it everywhere. I mean. If it's between us three it's fine. But nobody else." Natalie was serious with her business, she didn't like it getting out. And most people didn't even know she had business. She was quite a recluse.

"That's fine, Nat. I know the deal. Oh hey, speaking of which. You saw Julia and Elliot the other day right?" I asked very curious. I couldn't figure out how Elliot could land someone like Julia. I mean, Julia was the type of girl that could start very bad thoughts in guys heads just by walking by. Not only that, but she was THE most down to earth person I knew, next to her mother anyway. Maybe it was the motherly like persona she had that attracted her to Elliot. He was quite a klutz; even Natalie admits that he can't do the simplest task without messing it up, poor kid. Or maybe it was the fact that he could be adorable if he wanted. Even with that funny hairstyle he had.

"Oh, them, I guess they are kind of an item now. Seems that everyone on island is, except you…What's up with that, Chels?" I winced as she asked about my seriously lacking love life. Even with Shiba, it's not like I would ever pursue him.

"Are they really? Do I hear the wedding bells?" I tried to avoid the subject of me, and I really was curious about the odd couple. _Maybe I could talk to Julia when I go to buy animal feed later. _The thought popped into my head. _Yeah. That works. _

"I think you might, actually. The two have liked each other for over a year. What is stopping them? She is going unrivaled. I can see them getting married. And soon too." Natalie predicted, she was usually spot on with these kinds of things to. She was amazingly insightful. I often got jealous. _How is it that she had such knowledge of things like this? For someone who isolates herself she does seems to know all of the latest gossip. _

"You do raise a good point. Maybe I can help with the arrangements if they do get married. But in the mean time I think I will just sit and watch this little scenario unfold." I mumbled to myself, and hoped that I wouldn't have to repeat myself. Even if I was having issues with my love life didn't mean I had to bring everyone on the island down. But my secret was safe with Lanna and Natalie. "I think I am going to bail, go get some shopping done. Bye Natlee." I said my goodbye to Natalie and began to walk out the door. "Goodbye, Mr. Sunshine." I couldn't help but to stop and make fun of Elliot before I left. He never seemed to mind.

***********

_Clang. _The bell rang as I entered the Animal Shop. "Hey there Mirabelle, would you mind getting me some feed for my chickens? I have been running low lately." I asked as I started to wander into the kitchen, looking for Julia. "Hey Julia. What's up?"

"Well nothing really new to report, exceptttttttt--- Elliot and I are a couple!" She practically leapt in a fit of joy. _Ahhh, Julia. Sweet girl, but far too nice for her own good. Talking to her is like reading a book. No facts are spared._

"Oh really now? DO tell." I said with feigned interest, I already knew everything she was about to tell me, what I wanted to know was if she was planning a wedding anytime soon. It didn't take that long.

"Well, it first started when..." Julia's voice faded in and out, I was preoccupied; staring. _Vaughn. When the hell did he get so good looking? That Jerk. _I stood in awe, barely catching the ending of Julia's story. "So now, we are going to start to go to all of the festivals together. I hope this leads to something..." She trailed off with a blush.

"That is adorable Julia. And an inside source tells me she hears wedding bells soon." A little encouragement and a sly smile. _I really hope they work. I really, truly do… I think. _"Now, you must tell me about your…Cousin was it?" I said looking over to her cousin, standing about ten feet away, I felt a shy smile come across my face.

"Oh, that sourpuss? What on earth would you want to know about him?" He grunted from where he was standing, obviously listening in to what we were talking about. I didn't mind, really. But the look on Julia's face was more understandable, she mainly wanted to know why I was asking, it was the first time in two years.

"Anything you think I should know…" I snuck a glance at him. He was looking directly at me, no intention of looking away. I couldn't help but blush. _His eyes are gorgeous. _

"Well, the part he gets from my side of the family is the fact that he likes milk. Also very fond of mushrooms and porridge…" Her face falling into one of her thoughtful stares. All the while I was having a staring contest with Mr. Hardass himself.

I didn't look away. "Well. Thanks for that Julia. I wish the best for you and Elliot." I walked away, maintaining my eye contact with him the entire time.

When I got out of the shop I noticed a bush. _Strange, that was never there before I walked in... Hell, I haven't seen any plants like that around town, only in the jungle. _I couldn't help but to stare at it in awe, blocking the front door to the animal shop.

"Alright, I'll be back in a few hours, Mirabelle." Vaughn grunted as he was leaving the animal shop, I guess he didn't see me standing there, because he ran right into me. "Watch it!" He yelled at me.

"Why don't you watch your face?!" Was the only sad excuse for a comeback I could think of.

"Like how you were earlier?" He retorted, leaving me flustered, the man was as sharp as a tack. I somehow expected as much from him though.

"Sorry. It's just, that bush right there," I motioned to the shrub across the road, " That wasn't always there, was it?"

He couldn't help but stare too, "Not that I can recall." He moved over to the side a bit to get out of the doors way, and to get a better look at the strange thing. "Move over to the side, you don't want another door mishap." He cautioned.

I walked towards it and the thing seemed to shiver. "Is it moving?" I said to myself.

"Looks like it" Vaughn said anyway. He moved even closer to get a better look.

The next thing we both know the bush up and made a run for it. I stood there for a second wondering what the hell just happened, and then I was up and running after it. I needed to figure out what this was. I chased the thing all the way to the Diner. _Oh the memories. _I sighed, walking to the shrub slowly.

"It stopped?" Vaughn said coming up from behind me.

"Holy sheebus!" I screamed and turned, I slapped him in the face. I was sure if I was drinking anything at the time that I would have spit it up on him.

"Thanks." He said with the type of sarcasm that you would expect from someone like him. "Damn it." He looked down at his belt, "My buckle is gone."

"Here, let me help you look for it." I told him, feeling sorry because of what just happened. "The bush can wait for a bit."

"…Fine." And we searched for about five minutes before I found it on the path that we were just running.

"Got it." I told him, picking up his belt buckle and holding it up to the light triumphantly.

"Thanks." He took it from my hand and patted my head; this seemed to offend the bush because it shook violently.

"GRAWRGH! D:" It screamed, before the native I met the night before jumped out. "No hurt Kelshee!"

We both stood in awe, this was the first time Vaughn had seen him, and I just didn't expect him to come flying out of a bush. It screamed, before the native I met the night before jumped out. "No hurt Kelshee!"

"Shiba?!" I blurted out. It seemed to calm him.

"Kelshee hurt?" He asked eyes full of concern.

"I'm fine, Vaughn is a friend." I said motioning to Vaughn.

Shiba walked a circle around Vaughn, looking him up and down, and finally stopped in front of him. "Kelshee?" He asked.

"Yes Shiba?" I answered, giving Vaughn a thankful look for not hurting the poor guy.

"Where _his_ fun-bags?" Shiba leaned his head into Vaughn's chest and gave a poke where his "fun-bags" were supposed to be. I was about to faint with worry about what Vaughn was going to do to the poor guy, thankfully a babbling idiot walked by at just the right time.

"Hey, Chelsea, how's it going?" Denny winked as he made a sad attempt at decent conversation.

Shiba just looked at him in awe, "Now where HIS fun-bags go? Must be a sad woman."

With that sentence everything went right in the world, even if it was only for a small moment. Vaughn and I erupted into laughter as Denny began to fume.

"Hey, where do you get off?" Denny asked, his face was red with anger already. For such a lax person he had a temper worse than Vaughn.

"Get off where? Kelshee, we flying somewhere?" He turned to me with the most innocent look on his face; he genuinely didn't know what he had just done.

"No, no, Shiba. We aren't going anywhere. Denny is just making a joke… Right Denny?" I looked at him fiercely, not wanting to have him bring any harm to my jungle boy. _Haha, of all the things, MY jungle boy, he is really starting to grow on me. _

"He not very funny." He looked so confused.

"Let's take you home, Shiba. Thanks for the company you guys." I waved at Vaughn and Denny, while I walked with Shiba to the jungle.

****

"Okay, so let me get this straight. You pick up Tarzan from the jungle here, he starts to stalk you, asks the island hotties where their breasts ran off to, and you still have the hots for him? Since when have you been one to go native?" I could only imagine how much fun Lanna had in saying that last sentence.

"It doesn't bother you at all that he thinks your lover boy is a woman? Doesn't that make you a lesbian of some sort, oh but wait, you love me more than you ever could that silly little fisher boy." I shot back, much wanting to deny the fact that I was starting to care about "Tarzan," as she put it. It seemed that I couldn't bring myself to it though.

"Well, our relationship alone should tell you I have no problem with the lesbian activity. Besides, if I do get tired of Denny straddling the fence, a quick snip could totally fix that." Lanna had a small smirk on her face, and let out a laugh. But the damndest thing happened when she said all of that, turned out that Denny had walked into the café while Lanna was saying all of that. All she did was turn to him and say "Hey, sweetheart, this would be a great time for you to go fishing or something."

He just stared in amazement for a few seconds, and then backed out of the café slowly. Lanna sat there and began to pick at her cake.

"Wow Lanna, I think you made him want go out to get a sex change, lucky thing Trent isn't here yet, eh?" Lanna just sat there as she ate her cake; an almost demonic look came across her face as she contemplated the idea. I stared in a mix of horror and amazement at the face she made. "SO ANYWAYYYYY~" I practically shouted, causing the entire café to stare at me for a good few minutes. "Julia and Elliot are dating now…"

"Hun, that's about a big a surprise as me and Denny finally going out." She poked her cake a few more times with her fork before she pushed it away, finished.

"Hey, that still took me by surprise, okay? Excuse me for being completely oblivious to the things going on around me. I'm totally not running this island by myself." I rolled my eyes, "But of course we all just can't live without your _monstrous _contributions to this island." Granted, that was a bit catty, even for me, I couldn't take it back.

"Oh alright. Granted you are a farmer, and I guess the only romances you'd be interested would be ones between cows or... or chickens or whatever you have on that ranch of yours. After all, you get paid for that, right?" She simply shrugged, "But seriously, it's not as if they were all that discreet about it. Hell, first time Julia walked up to him even I thought I heard wedding bells." She paused a bit, "As for me and Denny... Yep, definitely heard wedding bells."

"Although there is a flaw with that, my lack of testosterone on the ranch prevents even romances between the animals. Unless one of my chickens decides to follow in the steps of your boyfriend and get some balls… Granted, he went off to become a woman, he would still get more balls than he has now." I snickered into my glass of water, I didn't believe she let me insult her boy toy like this all the time, I loved it.

"Not of a different species I hope. Or else your ranch is going to be the site of some freaky genetic engineering. As for Denny, I rather like him this way. You know. Women wear the pants in the relationship and all that. Which I'm sure you're going to experience soon with Jungle Boy. Though I'll admit he definitely has balls, he's pretty damn naive." She merely shrugged it off again, while I, again, spewed out my drink onto her face. "I should really consider wearing a helmet…" She sighed.

I chuckled, and wiped my mouth clean. "I'm sorry, hun. But you shouldn't, you already look silly enough in that little get up of yours."

Again, the demon was back on her face. "Not another word or Jungle Boy gets snipped instead of Denny."

My eyes, usually almond shaped, turned into complete circles. "Nothnx." I stared, "well. I'm going to leave you to dream about your fisher boy. I got the bill." I dropped a few pieces of gold on the table, "toodles."

****

Upon leaving the café, I caught Vaughn as he was walking towards the diner. "Hey Vaughn! Hold up!" I yelled to catch his attention.

He looked at me, his icier then I remembered, "what?"

"Thanks again for not pounding Shiba's face in." I looked at him gratefully and gave him a hug when I was in range.

Vaughn pushed away from the hug at first, but then just let it happen, as he stood there awkwardly. "Yeah, no problem…" He mumbled. I let him go and thanked him again before inviting him to go walking with me. "Sure I guess…"

We walked down to the beach; there we sat in the sand and just talked. It was nice. "I'm sorry about earlier, I can be pretty abrasive." He said, hiding his eyes behind his hat.

"Now silly, that isn't the word I would use when describing you." I started, "Tolerant seems to be a more suiting word, especially after what happened today. Did you see how angry Denny got?"

"The guy may not seem like it, but he has quite the temper." He admitted I knew he wasn't exactly on the best terms with the guy.

I sighed, "So I have seen."

"You know, I'm not much of a family person." He confided in me.

"Pardon?"

"Well, when I was younger, I lived with my parents and my grandparents, and I was a prick, I would always make my Grandmother do work for me, and have her do all my chores. I was also mean to my mother, mouthing off, being disrespectful." He covered his eyes again, trying to hide the sorrow in them.

I sat there in silence, as I waited for him to continue.

"Well, my Grandmother moved out of the house with my Grandfather, and ever since then I've blamed myself for it. My dad caught me being mean to my mother, so that was the end of that. All in all, I feel terrible about it. It nags at me still, but I only ran away from it and came here to help Julia and Mirabelle." His voice was thick with sorrow. I had a great urge to hug him at that moment, and I did.

"It's okay, I'm sure it's fine, your grandparents must have had some other reason for moving away. You're a great guy, don't be so hard on yourself."

He sat there in contemplation, "… I guess I don't have to feel as guilty about it. My Grandmother moved for more job opportunities…" He stood up, "Thanks."

I sat there in the sand and watched him walk away, standing a bit taller with some of the guilt off of his shoulders. His aura still surrounded him in mystery. _There he goes, my silver haired fox…_

**Authors note: Hurray for chapter three! :D Special thanks are in order! To who? The readers! And an extra special one to Danielle for her moments of wit that I have stolen. :3 I love youssssss. This chapter took a turn to the I have no idea. I think it came out alright. What do you think? Hmm? I can't hear you! Reviews are in order! D Kthanx. Well, I hope you enjoyed, sorry about the wait!**

**Loves. Diddly~**


	4. Fireflies

**Disclaimer: This is my first song fiction, so if it is utterly terrible, I'm sorry. T-T  
The song is Fireflies by Owl City. :3 I absolutely adore this song, so yeah. Inspiration? Maybe. It'll prolly be short though, just a heads up.  
I also don't own the rights to Harvest Moon. *tear***

Fireflies- Shiba [Such an original title, I know.]

After Chelsea dropped me off at home it was kind of late. There seemed to be a bunch of glowing bugs flying around. It seemed strange that I only took notice of them now, even though they came by every fall. Funny the things you notice when you are in thought. I let out a yawn, tired from hiding out in my camouflage all day. Despite my tired state, I went for a walk around the jungle.

After an hour or so, my tired eyelids refused to stay open, and knowing it was completely safe, I decided to lie where I was standing. The bugs glowing brighter as my eyes closed.

_You would not believe your eyes if ten million fireflies lit up the world as I fell asleep._

It turned into a fitful sleep, filled with an unpleasant dream, containing Chelsea and that silver haired man/woman I saw earlier today. The fact that it lacked a certain part led me to believe that it was more man than anything. They were talking again, except she seemed to be paying him more attention then she usually would. That fact alone was enough to bother me, but she also ended up going into the diner with him, holding his hand.

Growing with jealousy I stormed into the diner, I needed to know what was going on. That man could not like Chelsea, she was mine. Everything was right about her, and I knew it. When I was finally in the diner, the man was gone; it was just her, surrounded by the glowing bugs that were surrounding me before I fell asleep. She looked amazing; the glow of the bugs seemed to create a soft glow around her being. Her hair was set free from the bandana she usually wore. Her clothing consisted of a simple baby blue dress, and some heels. I couldn't help but stand there in shock and admiration.

_'Cause they fill the open air and leave teardrops everywhere. You'd think me rude but I would just stand and stare._

When she finally looked over at me my heart skipped a few beats, which can't be good for your health. The look in her eyes was one of, well, want. That's what it seemed like anyway. I took a step forward; she walked up to meet me. I took a breath, and relaxed a bit. She had a soft smile on her face as she lifted her had to caress my cheek. This move not only made me feel like a woman, but it also made me have small butterflies in my stomach.

Standing there with her was wonderful, but I just had a lingering feeling that something was quite wrong with this picture. I tried as best as I possibly could to suppress that feeling so that I could enjoy that moment as long as possible. I wished it could've lasted forever.

_I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep, 'cause everything is never as it seems._

My hands seemed like they were on autopilot as I put them on her waist and began to dance around the room, her arms gripped my shoulders lightly. She rested her head on my shoulder as we moved in unison, and basked in the glow of the fireflies. That moment could not have been more perfect, until Chelsea fell to the ground. I accidentally stepped on her foot, which caused her to fall. Only then did I remember how bad of a dancer I was.

She looked up at me from the ground, forgiveness written all over her face. Those eyes were so expressive that she didn't have to say a word in order for me to understand her. I helped her back up and she showed me how to move properly. A motherly smile on her face the entire time. All I wanted to do in those moments was make her proud of me, to prove to her that I was worthy of her presence.

_'Cause I'd get a thousand hugs from ten thousand lightning bugs as they tried to teach me how to dance. A fox trot above my head, a sock hopped beneath my bed, a disco ball is just hanging by a thread._

Her face was calming; it relieved me of all the nervousness I had that involved me dancing with her. After I got the hang of it, we danced gracefully around the Diner. Although it was strange that the Diner lacked any tables since I walked in, and how the bugs got in even though the windows were never open. I had to admit, they added a nice glow to us, so I didn't mind them. As far as I was concerned, everything was right in the world.

The nagging feeling that I pressed back earlier started to rear its ugly head again.

_I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep 'cause everything is never as it seems. (When I fall asleep)_

We did a few spins in our dance, her hair swaying with the momentum. She has never looked so wonderful before. Her face lit up every time I looked at her, which was often. Her ever expressive eyes were hypnotic. I couldn't bring myself to look away from them. It's like they held me in some kind of trance. I didn't mind in the least, they looked at me with love.

For the first moment in my life I was taken away from all of my worries. She seemed to have the ability to do that to me. No more stress from Wada, no worries about anything. It was just me, her, and the fireflies.

_Leave my door open just a crack. (Please take me away from here) 'Cause I feel like such an insomniac. (Please take me away from here)_

I was awake. I loved that moment. Chelsea was dancing with me in the Diner full of fireflies, right? The fact was, I wasn't true what fact was anymore. I still couldn't help but wonder why I wasn't tired. I have been awake all day. I should be sleepy by now. Maybe I was too tired to fall asleep, and I did decide to walk back into town. I did. This was happening. I looked into Chelsea's eyes again, and melted back into ecstasy.

_Why do I tire of counting sheep (Please take me away from here) when I'm far too tired to fall asleep?_

As we continued on into the night, the fireflies started to disappear. I got a chill as we kept moving along. Which was strange because we were indoors, the chill shouldn't be there. As long as I was there with Chelsea, I would be fine. I knew it. But I was trying to savor as much of the moment as I could.

_To ten million fireflies I'm weird 'cause I hate goodbyes. I got misty eyes as they said farewell. (Said farewell) But I'll know where several are if my dreams get real bizarre  
'Cause I saved a few and I keep them in a jar._

The dances we shared were truly wonderful, but my suppressed thoughts were still bothersome. Why hadn't I fallen asleep yet? What made me go back to Diner, where I knew Chelsea would be? Why would she take to me so fondly, after everything that I did?

_I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to stay that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep, 'cause everything is never as it seems. (When I fall asleep)_

The speed of our dance kept quickening, faster and faster. She twirled out of my arms and away somewhere. The fireflies concealing her location, until they too were gone.

_I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep, 'cause everything is never as it seems. (When I fall asleep)_

Then, I remembered.

_I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep because my dreams are bursting at the seams._

**Authors note:  
So, this came out fairly well. Kind of short. I kinda liked it. Did yous? Lemme know. :D Even if you didn't. Also, sorry about the crappy attempt at character development with Vaughn at the end of the last chapter. D: Blehs at that. Hurrayyyyy~  
Loves~ Diddly. **


	5. She's So Hot Boom

**Disclaimer: **No owning of anything, this is another songfic. Get used to it. :P The song being; She's so hot, boom. By Flight of the conchords. So yes, LANGUAGEEEEEEE. Watch out kiddies. This one will be interesting. XD

She's so hot, boom- Chelsea [This title seems misleading…]

_Knock. Knock. Knock. KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. _It literally sounded like someone was trying to rape my door. My poor, poor door. "LEMME IN!" Yelled the man-child standing outside said door.

"Damn it, Pierre. It's six in the morning what do you want?" I asked, as I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

"Guess what today issss~" He asked in a singsong voice, his tone was one of a prepubescent teenager. You know, the ones who were about to hit puberty, but haven't so they have random cracks in the pitches of their voice? Like that.

"Today is Winter, 4th. Why do you ask?" I was growing rather impatient with him.

"Nope, I have decided that today, for this year only, we will have a winter cooking festival!" He exclaimed happily, clapping his hands and jumping around like a toddler.

_Oh my god, she's so hot  
she's so fucking hot, she's like a curry_

I am pretty sure at this point; my face was red with anger. If it wasn't it sure felt that way. "Pierre, with all the respect I have left for you... Why in the world are we having a cooking festival, in the winter and on the most random day?" I tried to keep my face in a calm state, but I could feel the heat coming out of my eyes.

His face brightened even more, "...BECAUSE I WAS HUNGREH GAWD DAMNIT!" He yelled and took off heading for the field we held our town festivals on. Well that's what I was guessing anyway, for all I know he could be going off to go and traumatize some mush—"This year's theme is curry~" He popped back up from out of freaking nowhere. I near slapped him in the face. That didn't exactly help with the anger I was feeling at the time. The fact that he forced everyone to make one thing was also strange.

_I gotta tell her how hot she is  
But if I tell her how hot she is she'll think I'm being sexist  
She's so hot, she's making me sexist...bitch_

I ended up cooking some curry anyway. Red curry, hoping to poison that man-child. Even if he was Natalie's boyfriend, she kept telling me she doesn't usually like the "shorties", so I didn't think she would mind if I tried. At least, I was pretty sure she wouldn't.

I walked in to the field, greeting everyone; the usual random theme music that plays when a festival happens was already going.

_I think I need a little bit of drums  
I need just a little bit of mandolin_

Before getting into real conversations with people, I went to give my dish to Pierre. Instead of the usual spoon he had, there was a giant fork in his hand. I never got how he expected to eat curry with a fork, but that was beside the point.

"Why are you carrying around a GIANT fork, Pierre? So you can eat everything you see?" It was Vaughn, battling it out with Pierre. Vaughn getting into battles of wit with people was a common sight around here.

"NO! I'm carrying it around so that I can say; I'm gonna FORK you up!" Of course, Vaughn _losing_ battles of wit with people was also a common sight around here.

To put it simply, my reaction to that was a palm to my forehead, "Pierre, I brought my dish. I'm going to leave it here and go talk to people" I walked away before I could get a response, not wanting to be included in that conversation.

I went over to talk to everyone, giving them the ever cliché 'how are you doing?' and other awkward conversation fillers. I'm not usually like that with these people, but the anger from earlier in the morning hadn't subsided.

Natalie and Lanna, who I assumed could tell I was pissed, walked up to me. "What's eating you? The Gourmet?" Lanna asked.

"Well if you are going to put it that way. No, thas gross." I shot my tongue out at her. Natalie just stood off to the side, listening and snickering like she usually did.

"Well something is obviously bothering you." Said Natalie, to the point, like she always was.

"It's just that--" I got cut off by the obnoxious yelling from Pierre.

"Hey everyone! It's time to start!" Everyone who entered the ever so random cooking contest lined up for him to try their food. A few faces you didn't expect to see were lined up next to me. Karen, Natalie, Vaughn, and Shiba. I was a bit shocked, Karen brought a dish that looked like straight charcoal, Natalie brought regular brown curry, Vaughn seemed to have the same idea I did, and had red curry as well. Shiba's dish on the other hand, looked like some form of salad.

Little Wonka went to Natalie first, looking a bit shady, probably trying to hide the fact that the other dishes lined up in front of him scared the crap out of him.

_People in the room doing Boom like it's never been done_

He then went to Karen, it was an interesting sight to see. "Wait!" She called, and brought out a blowtorch before little Wonka was able to try her dish. The look on his face was priceless as she torched the dish before he tried it... Okay, the look on his face after he tried the dish was pretty priceless, I couldn't help but burst out in laughter.

_Bust a move it's just the kick of a gun  
In the Marquee in the bass is Booming_

My turn next, Karen's dish was still slightly smoking from her going at it with the blow torch. Little Wonka eyed me warily, not quite knowing what to expect from my red curry. I had a nice smirk on my face, waiting to see him choke on it.

Much to my surprise he liked it. He downed the entire plate of it. My plans of poison being foiled, my temper flared up a bit.

_Someone's smoking Boom in da back of da room  
And it's the first day of spring, the flowers are blooming_

Shiba and his salad looking dish were after I was. I swear I heard Lanna from somewhere in the crowd go "Heh, look, Tarzan decided to cook for you." Not knowing if she was referring to me or Pierre, my face flushed and anger went up a little more.

One bite from jungle boy's dish and it was as if Pierre hit puberty. His voice lowered considerably and he let out a yell, ones from those powerthirst videos they have on youtube. [Yes, I do realize that it was completely random, but I needed to put it in. XD]

This practically scared the crap out of the entire island. Shiba had no idea if that was a good review or not, so he pulled one of his adorable little moves and said "Wah. T_T"

_Drum Boom bass and the party is Booming  
Boom ba Boom like a rocket taking off to da moon  
Boom Boom go the bride and groom ahh_

By that point I think Pierre was too scared of his new voice and all the food he had eaten to try Vaughn's red curry. I think it was a lucky thing he didn't, I swore there was a poison mushroom left over from fall in there. If you could believe this, nobody won. Pierre ran off to his house to cry in his emo corner or something, so I went about talking to everyone about what just happened.

Regis seemed peeved that the event ended before he could have entered his dish. Looked like finest curry. Sabrina just stood there meekly, waiting for her father's approval to go home and paint.

The rest of the villagers had more or less the same reaction, "Oh that poor man-child." To tell you the truth, I was irritated as hell with him, and really couldn't care less. I walked over to Lanna and Natalie, who were snickering.

"He actually got what was coming to him. What an idiot, calling a cooking festival in the middle of the winter." Natalie.

"Did you see his face when he took a bite of Tarzan's food? Those jungle herbs must have some kick to them." Lanna.

I kind of just walked up and stood there, not feeling like talking my face looked fine, but my eyes felt hollow. As if my soul was having a great conflict with itself, leaving my mind empty. The fact that Shiba was there kind of scrambled my brain even more.

_See ya shaking that Boom Boom  
Who?_

The fact that I could feel someone looking at me was also a bit unnerving. I'm not usually one who gets started at so much that I feel uncomfortable. Even if I can't see the person. I decided to take a look around at who it could possibly be... Shiba. I knew it. He did come here to be near me. Oh, how I wish my heart beat didn't just accelerate at that thought.

_See ya looking at my Boom Boom  
What?_

I walked over away from Lanna and Natalie, into a more isolated spot, absorbed in my thoughts. What I didn't expect to happen next was for Shiba to come up to me and give me a tight hug. "Kelshee! :D" He said as he let me go.

"Yes, Shiba?" I asked him softly. Not quite feeling like myself around him.

He tried his best to not mess with my mood anymore. It was quite adorable. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." Monotone.

"Wada taught me new word, you know. :3" He tried to make conversation.

I looked up at him with interest, "What word, Shiba?"

"Love, Kelshee. I love you. :3" He said as if he knew that I was going to say it back.

_You want some Boom Boom  
It's clear it's Boom some Boom Boom ahh  
Let me buy you a Boom Boom  
When?_

My face turned red. I can guarantee you that. My eyes probably had some form of spark to them, and then fizzled out. I had no idea how to respond to something like that, especially from someone I was starting to develop feelings for. Even if I only did know him for a season or two.

"Thank...You? Shiba, do you even know what love is?" The boy's innocence was truly amazing, it made my heart weep that he might not even know what the word means.

"Wada say it when you can't stop thinking about someone, and your heart feel funny when you see them. Wada always right ;D"

_You order a fancy Boom  
Who?  
You like Boom, I like Boom  
Enough small Boom lets Boom the Boom ahh_

That poor, innocent boy. I couldn't risk brining him around my friends and I. We would corrupt him. Besides, he doesn't love me. I'm probably the first woman that he has ever had a conversation with... Although, Pierre hangs around in the jungle a lot... And he is a very feminine looking man-child. But still... He has no idea what he does to me. I don't like it. I don't like him. The only reason I feel like this is because he is the first male to pay me any attention like this. Any girl would be flattered at the last few statements he made.

_So we're driving in a Boom Boom__  
Driving, back to your Boom ba Boom  
And you turn out the Boom Boom_

I decided to leave after that. I couldn't take it anymore. My mind was in such a scramble, I couldn't deal with anything. If someone were to ask me a simple question, the answer would have been; eggs. Or something to that extent anyway. I had to go home and just chill. Tend to my animals a little more maybe.

My heart was still at an accelerated pace. This was not what I bargained for. At all.

_And we B__oom Boom Boom â€˜til the break of Boom  
My boom is ringing it's Big-Booms-Boom  
Back from ten years in the Boom  
And they said he got his Boom chopped off in the Boom  
But the crazy Boom still wants to Boom, well  
Sorry girl, I gotsta Boom  
Give you a Boom in the afternoon and  
Boom Boom baby, don't forget you the most Boom Boom I ever met.  
A Boom Boom_

_Who's the Boom King?  
Who's the Boom King?_

I knew the answer to that.

**Authors note:  
**That came out nothing like I intended it to. Suckish? Lemme know. The plan was for this chapter to be light-hearted. But after I started to get into it, it called for that to happen. The song was taken kind of literally, the booms being the heartbeat, yadda yadda, thought I would clarify that for you. Heck, the booms also would show whenever she would get pissed. :D I think this one came out alrighttttt. I liked the previous chapter more though. =/ I let my emotions get the better of me when I write. These chapters are turning more into monologues though. Hmm. Should I keep it? Let meh know!  
Loves~ Diddly.


	6. That was all I needed

That was all I needed- Shiba

I got home after the festival; I knew Chelsea liked me; even if she didn't own up to it. Call me cocky, but I could just tell. It was getting close to dark, and I was still outside in the snow. Some of the fireflies from fall were still there. I guess the poor things didn't realize that if they stayed they would freeze to death.

Leaving the fireflies to their deaths, I went to the rushing river on the west side of my house. The currents moved much too quickly for it to freeze. Though with further thought, no body of water was ever frozen on this island. The temperature may have dropped, but the bodies of water would always remain unfrozen.

My mind kept drifting to topics like those. _Stay focused, keep on one topic, the one that matters most right now. _The topic I knew all too well, yet little about. _Chelsea. _Yes, I knew she liked me. Every fiber of my being told me so. Maybe breaking out those words this early startled her? It seemed like a possibility to me. I shrugged it off, and went to sit at the river bed. The water was rushing nearly as fast as my thoughts. I couldn't seem to rein them in.

It was as if everything that happened today was replaying in my head in ten different places, at different speeds. It was all too much for my mind to comprehend at the moment. I had to focus, so I looked out across the rushing river. The darkness of night wasn't able to hide the snow. It was a pretty picture. I began to get sleepy.

I wasn't able to keep my eyes open for much longer. I went to sleep knowing this though; Chelsea liked me. It was enough. I leaned forward for what was intended to be sleep, but in actuality; I fell head first into the rushing waters. Hitting my head on the bottom, I was given a concussion. My body was never to be seen again.

**A/N: **Yes. I do realize that this chapter is amazingly short. And that it has been a while since I've decided to write anything. For this I am quite sorry. Felt like the story needed a plot twist or something eventful like that. Anyhoo. Lemme know what you thought, your opinion matters to meeeee. Loves~ Diddly.


	7. Escapism

**Escapism.**

"Denial, thought, more denial, and elation; those were steps that I took to finally get where I am now. Though, I wasn't planning on adding a new step. Escapism; it's defined in the dictionary as a habitual diversion of the mind to purely imaginative activity or entertainment as an escape from reality or routine. I never really pictured myself having to do something like that. But when put in certain situations, one cannot help but imagine a better life, or place to be at that moment in time. Imagining that you are there with the person that just said that they loved you, saying you love them back, holding their hand, and walking off into the sunset.

Except that can't happen; my escape only lasts so long before the abrupt reality of it all shows its ugly head again. Something needs your attention, and you need to face the fact that what happened is final and cannot be undone. No matter how you wish it to be so, you can't go back in time. No matter how much you did love the person, how much you regret not taking them seriously. But I'm not entirely at fault. He was naïve, how was I supposed to know he actually meant what he was saying when he told me he loved me? How am I supposed to believe what anyone says anymore? He was telling the truth, but that doesn't mean that everyone is.

Though locking myself in my house for the past few weeks hasn't been healthy. Ranting to Vaughn about all of my problems might not have been one of my best ideas. Sure, he is like an older brother to me now… My male relationships tend to develop fast with people like him. They understand me, or it seems like it anyway. But that is all beside the point.

What point? The point of escaping; it's not working for me. Being flighty can only get you so far. It doesn't take away regret…" I couldn't find the inspiration to write anymore. I had to close my journal and get out of my cramped house. Chat up a few neighbors, stretch my legs again. Anything.

I yawned, stretched and got my ass up off my bed. _Food supplies are starting to run low again. Maybe I should go and buy more… Why not? _I began to head down to the animal shop. Passing by the well developed couples; Julia and Elliot were holding hands sitting outside of Elliot's house. Natalie… She didn't stick with Pierre; but she did mention a lover in the city. Denny was bringing up some fish to cook for a dinner date he had with Lanna. This, surprisingly, didn't bother me. Despite the fact that someone I cared for very much just passed a few weeks ago, I didn't feel any resentment towards these people. They should enjoy as much of it as they can.

"Mirabelle, I don't think this is that great of an idea." Vaughn was trying to convince the woman to stop doing something… I wasn't too sure what.

"I'm going to do it. And – Oh look. There's the girl I needed right now." Mirabelle signaled for me to come over to the counter so she would be able to tell me something.

I approached with caution; I honestly had no idea as to what the hell was going on. "Yes?"

"I'm thinking of creating a mixed animal competition. Or… We want you to bring a sheep to the cow festival. You can be the island wildcard." She explained.

"Though you don't have to; I was planning on having you enter one of your better cows. Maybe Vanilla, she is your oldest and best cared for." Vaughn tried to cover Mirabelle's ridiculous request with something more reasonable. I had the utmost respect and trust in Vaughn's decisions.

But Mirabelle never seemed to know when to shut up. "No! You see. We'll have her there to throw everyone off. They won't know what hit them. She's our wildcard, because she isn't good enough to be entering with cows."

I just had to stand there silently. It wasn't my place to interrupt their conversation about me… While I was standing right there, being looked over and discussed like a prized pig. Well, not so much a prized pig, more like one up for slaughter, and they were checking which parts each person would get. Either way, it was degrading, and not what I what I went there for. The festival doesn't need me entering a sheep_. I'm bringing a cow that will be judged as all the other cows were. Mirabelle needs to get her head out of her ass. _One wouldn't have guessed that many people on the island disliked Mirabelle; at the start she seemed alright, she enjoyed bringing up people's good points and would inflate their egos; until they were lured into a state of being where they couldn't stand the _thought_ of her. I shrugged it off and left. But it did get the wheels in my head turning.

*****

The rest of the day was a blur, really. Since the whole encounter with Mirabelle put me in a sour mood I decided to go down to the forest. Though I did just have to deal with the death of Shiba, I wanted to go and visit there. It brought me to a state of peace, for me it was the closest I could get to him without dying myself.

I sat on the shore of the river, not wanting to dip my feet in. What Mirabelle said did make me wonder about who I was. I really didn't have any time to focus on something like that, but with Shiba gone, some thinking needed to be done.

_Why is it that Mirabelle thought of her as a 'wildcard'? Was it a sincere remark, or was she trying to kiss ass again? What makes me able to get along with people? I can't even stand people. I just don't get it anymore. What am I supposed to do? _

I didn't cry, crying is for the weak. I'm better than that. I just need to find a way to be the strongest.

**A/N: Hello my lovelies. Enjoy this chapter? Hate it? Let me know. Any ideas on things I should add in as the story goes along? I'm curious as to what my readers want to happen. Who knows, you might get brought into the story. Anyway~ Leave your review love/hate. Loves~ Diddly. **


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